1. School Board, lawmakers talk teacher shortage.

• Alabama education groups in 2020 will again push for the creation of better retirement benefits, blaming the current pension plan for at least part of the state’s teacher shortage.
• But some State House leaders say a teacher recruitment fix should be more narrowly tailored than a proposal that died in the 2019 legislative session.
• Increased pay, including a possible raise in 2021, is a better way to attract new educators, one lawmaker said.
• At an Alabama State Board of Education meeting Thursday, members of the teacher shortage task force rattled off concerning statistics…
• Since 2010, there’s been a 40% decrease in students entering teacher education programs;
• 8% of teachers leave the profession each year, and only about one-third of those departures are due to retirement;
• 30% of Alabama classrooms are taught by “out of field” teachers with no background in the subject they’re teaching.
• There was some back-and-forth about this issue in this past legislative session, and it looks like there will be again next time.
• ADN’s Mary Sell has the full story, which is worth your time this morning.
• Read more HERE.

2. Ivey opines on the Mobile Bayway.

• Gov. Kay Ivey has a special op-ed in today’s Daily News on the subject of the Mobile Bayway project.
• The proposed $2.1 billion bridge project has been the subject of intense criticism in Alabama’s coastal counties, and the issue has gone statewide.
• In her op-ed, Ivey makes the case for pressing forward with the plan, offering a little history and pushing back against some of the rumors circulating.
• Here’s an excerpt:

• Read the full piece HERE.

3. Training starts for youth sports coaches, volunteers.

4. Two arrested after road rage shooting.

• A man shot at another parent in a suspected road rage incident during morning drop-off Thursday at an Alabama elementary school, police said.
• No one was injured in the shooting that happened in the parking lot of Blount Elementary School in Montgomery on Thursday morning, said Montgomery Department of Public Safety Spokeswoman Martha Earnhardt.
• The Montgomery Police Department said in a news release that the two men got into an argument after a traffic dispute in the parking lot of the school. Police said one of the men then shot at the other.
• Authorities said 38-year-old Isaiah Johnson was arrested on charges of discharging a firearm into an occupied vehicle.
• Full story HERE.

5. Filmore tapped for top legislative role.

• Gov. Kay Ivey has named William Filmore as Director of Legislative Affairs.
• In that role, he’ll serve as the lead conduit between the Governor’s Office and the Alabama Legislature.
• Ivey’s office confirmed the staff promotion when contacted by Alabama Daily News this week. Filmore replaces Jared White, who recently left to take a position managing governmental affairs for Auburn University.
• “He is extremely valuable, and I am proud to be promoting him to serve as Director of Legislative Affairs,” Ivey said.
• Fillmore has served in state government since 2015, starting as Governmental Relations Coordinator at the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency before joining Ivey’s staff in 2017. He previously worked as the governor’s House Liaison and Director of Local Governmental Affairs.
• Full story HERE.

Headlines.

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